Sounders acquire GK Stefan Frei

A day after declining a contract option on Michael Gspurning, the team’s starting goalkeeper the past two seasons, the Seattle Sounders announced a trade to acquire goalkeeper Stefan Frei from Toronto FC for a conditional 2015 first-round pick.

Frei, 27, is from Switzerland, played at Cal and was Toronto’s first-round pick in the 2009 draft. He was a starter for most of his first three seasons in Toronto, but injuries and later the play of his backup, Joe Bendick, relegated Frei to a backup role for most of the past two seasons.

“Stefan is a goalkeeper we have liked for a number of years,” Sounders coach Sigi Schmid said in a press release. “He is a quality professional who brings experience and leadership to the position. Adding Stefan at this point of his career was very attractive to us.”